Three Mile

This movie looks promising.

Pre Unit Ironhead

Thanks to Vorhese for pointing this thread out. Pretty cool idea. It's amazing how cooler an Ironhead engine looks when it's not unitized. IMO Ironheads are arguably the most homely HD engine. This could almost pass for a generator Shovel, one of my favorites.

 

World's Slowest Indian

Riders Show - Fremont

As if there wasn't already enough to do on Saturday. I hope I can make it later in the evening.

Yamaha's 60th

I know I'm a week behind but the little kid in me was thrilled to see Justin Barcia and the rest of the Yamaha JGR Team running the original yellow paint scheme for Yamaha Motor Co's 60th anniversary. Just like Bob Hannah. So cool.

Justin "Bam Bam" Barcia - 2015

Bob "Hurricane" Hannah - 1979

Speedway Park - 1971

This photo is thought to be taken in 1971 at Speedway Park in Albuquerque New Mexico. The photo was taken when my sister's school friend Jerry Liggett won a drawing for a Yamaha GTMX 80.

Based on the paint scheme I think this may actually be a 1973 model. I think the photo could have been taken in mid-1972. Below is a portion of the 1973 Yamaha dealer brochure.

Thanks to Dwight Crapson for sharing the photo.

Indian / Polaris

Ran When Parked

1970 Sportster Drag Bike - As long as I'm on a Sportster kick...

More Cossacks - Sturgis

Noot had a couple of nice shots of the Cossacks.

Ran When Parked

1964 Harley-Davidson XLCH Sportster Cafe Racer - Every so often I have to post a Sportster in some attempt show Nate the light... Not everyone can make an Ironhead this irresistible. Nice bike!

Clydesdales & Knuckleheads

From Sturgis. True American horsepower.

Flaming Board Crash - Sturgis 2015

Nicely done Earl!

Ran When Parked

1957 Triumph TR6 - Thanks to Vorhese for pointing this one out. If I was going to own a swingarm era Pre-Unit I suspect it would look a little like this one.

Man Down

A fellow rider and coworker of mine was involved in a serious motorcycle accident returning from Sturgis.

Chuck was pulling a trailer with his bike and one of the tires on the trailer blew out. As he was pulling over to the shoulder when the trailer jerked and threw him off the bike directly into his wife Laura's path. She was able to slow but could not stop and ran over Chuck's torso before hitting a guardrail. Chuck's wife has loads of cuts and bruises but walked away. Chuck did not fair so well. Chuck has a broken back, broken ribs, broken clavicle and both lungs are punctured. Chuck had surgery yesterday an is in a lot of pain.

Chuck - pictured on the right

Chuck and Laura will be stuck in Colorado as long as he is hospitalized. Both bikes are heavily damaged. Laura is having to improvise lodging and will probably have to rent a car. Needless to say bills are piling up during a very tough time for them. A GoFundMe has been setup to help them. Please contribute if you are able.

Tacoma's Grit City Motorcycle Night

Every second Wednesday during the summer, Tacoma's St. Helens District hosts a motorcycle gathering similar to Ballard's "Backfire Moto"called Grit City Motorcycle Night. The next one is tomorrow.

Chief At Little Big Horn

Flathead Rob's Chief at Little Big Horn. In the background is the memorial to the Indian victory Custer.

 In the foreground is a tribute vintage Indian's victory over modern Harley on the coolness scale...

Channeling Johnny

Helena Christensen Channels Johnny Strabler. I'm not normally much a fan of these high fashion motorcycle shoots but this photo is pretty cool.

"Chicago Ray" Schlee

I recently received an interesting inquiry from an old post mentioning "Chicago" Ray Schlee. Nicole Albold asked the following:

Can you tell me where "Chicago Ray's" shop was? I believe my father restored and painted Harleys with him when I was just a tot. 
 
Unfortunately I don't know. I did some Internet research which was mostly fruitless. I did however stumble across an acknowledgement to Chicago Ray in the book Classic Harley Big Twins - Knucklehead, Panhead, Shovelhead.

To my knowledge I've never met the author but I thought it was cool that several Washington natives also contributed to the book. Tom Samuelson is front-and-center at nearly everything motorcycle history related in the area and I've mentioned the legacy of Carmen Tom here on several occasions. No answer to Nicole's question unfortunately. I'll ask around though.

I did find a post in which Irish Rich mentioned being friends with Chicago Ray. I sent him an email to see if he could help.

If anyone else seeing this can answer Nicole's question I'd love to hear from you.

Sturgis Continued

The Cossacks have been keeping us up-to-date with their Sturgis trip pretty regularly via SMS. Since there are interested parties not receiving or having trouble iewing the SMS updates I thought I'd include them here too.

Lunch in Hamilton, MT. Just beyond lolo Pass

Dillion MT. Likely NOT the Indian's first saloon visit in it's life.

Sunrise in Dillion, MT

Virginia City, MT

Quick breakfast and gas-up in Bozeman

Red Lodge. Bikes outnumber cars about 4 to one

Smith mine, closed after a gas explosion in 1943 that killed about 70 miners

Sitting Bull's shirt, Buffalo Bill Museum, Cody WY

Annie Oakley's guns, gloves and trunk

Nearly 1500 miles of the most beautiful country imaginable, and the Seattle Cossacks are about to hit Sturgis for the 75th Black Hills Motorcycle Rally

Greybull Motel. Biker friendly. Maybe

175 miles from Sturgis this construction zone resulted in slow moving bumper to bumper traffic for 16 miles

Sturgis Exit